tank stand questions and stocking reccomendations

[Sesom]

I needed a project for my shop class so I made an aquarium stand for my upcoming 70 ish gallon tank. One of the boards was a bit warped and it leans back a bit. How much of a problem will it be? I figured Id just put the leaning side against the wall. I designed the stand to hold well over 4 times the weight that the tank will be.


Also, I need some stocking questions. I want to add otos, some type of corys, neocaridina shrimp, hillstream loaches, cardinal tetras, maybe lyretail guppes, japanese trapdoor snails, maybe rabbit snails, maybe a vampire shrimp, maybe a powder blue dwarf gourami, although i have heard they can be aggressive, some kuhli loaches, and some schooling fish that could take up the top part of the tank. would really love to include some oddball fish. Tank dimensions are 36" by 24" by 18" inches. id rather stick with smaller fish as it will be a heavily planted tank and I am not looking to do a ton of water changes, but if any of you have any suggestions I would love some. I was also thinking about some of the paradoxus variety of fish and I would just start up a microfauna culture to feed them but I dont know how well they do with other fish. Also it

 

[BBradbury]

Hello. As a carpenter, you'll appreciate the need for perfection when it comes to your tank stand. A warped board isn't going to be acceptable if you're planning on placing several hundred pounds of water and materials on top. As you know, your warped board will need to be run through a planer several times to even out the piece. Once complete, you must always check to make sure the stand is level. You can use a level or fill the tank a bit to make sure the water level is even. Elementary, I know, but necessary. You can always use wood shims to level the sides. I always fill the tank a bit at a time to make sure there are no leaks. If your tank seems good at this point, you're ready for the rest of the tank equipment and other materials. No fish yet! This is enough work to keep you busy for a little while. Come back when you're ready to proceed.

B

 

[fishkeeper123]

I needed a project for my shop class so I made an aquarium stand for my upcoming 70 ish gallon tank. One of the boards was a bit warped and it leans back a bit. How much of a problem will it be? I figured Id just put the leaning side against the wall. I designed the stand to hold well over 4 times the weight that the tank will be.


Also, I need some stocking questions. I want to add otos, some type of corys, neocaridina shrimp, hillstream loaches, cardinal tetras, maybe lyretail guppes, japanese trapdoor snails, maybe rabbit snails, maybe a vampire shrimp, maybe a powder blue dwarf gourami, although i have heard they can be aggressive, some kuhli loaches, and some schooling fish that could take up the top part of the tank. would really love to include some oddball fish. Tank dimensions are 36" by 24" by 18" inches. id rather stick with smaller fish as it will be a heavily planted tank and I am not looking to do a ton of water changes, but if any of you have any suggestions I would love some. I was also thinking about some of the paradoxus variety of fish and I would just start up a microfauna culture to feed them but I dont know how well they do with other fish. Also it

Sounds like a nice tank idea, shrimp will limit your stocking. However, I would add a Bristlenose pleco to that as they are amazing fish and are compatible with shrimp. Don’t do a a powder blue dwarf gourami, they are known to be aggressive and I’m confident eventhough I haven’t kept one that the shrimp won’t stand a chance.

 

[Sesom]

Hello. As a carpenter, you'll appreciate the need for perfection when it comes to your tank stand. A warped board isn't going to be acceptable if you're planning on placing several hundred pounds of water and materials on top. As you know, your warped board will need to be run through a planer several times to even out the piece. Once complete, you must always check to make sure the stand is level. You can use a level or fill the tank a bit to make sure the water level is even. Elementary, I know, but necessary. You can always use wood shims to level the sides. I always fill the tank a bit at a time to make sure there are no leaks. If your tank seems good at this point, you're ready for the rest of the tank equipment and other materials. No fish yet! This is enough work to keep you busy for a little while. Come back when you're ready to proceed.

B

The stand is level, the top and bottom are flat just the supports have a few degrees of lean to them so I am not sure home much to trust it. Also, I was just wondering about stocking for making plans, I am not planning on adding them in any time soon. I have to wait a while for it to cycle and to get plants ready and everything. I already filled up the tank to check for leaks, its all good. Thanks for the advice

 

[Sesom]

Sounds like a nice tank idea, shrimp will limit your stocking. However, I would add a Bristlenose pleco to that as they are amazing fish and are compatible with shrimp. Don’t do a a powder blue dwarf gourami, they are known to be aggressive and I’m confident eventhough I haven’t kept one that the shrimp won’t stand a chance.

Yeah, I was hoping to stick with a lot more micro schooling fish than large fish so I could include the shrimp. I am also not worried about the shrimp babies. Some will get eaten, but there will be plenty of hiding spots, as it is a lushly planted tank. I wasnt sure about the gourami. I seen some that are super aggressive, and some that are completely fine, but ill probably stay away from them. Are there any gourami species that are more mellow? Yeah I think a bristlenose would be fun, all the pluses of a common pleco without the size or waste. I was also thinking about getting a twig pleco, they seem fun. Also another catfish I was thinking about was the upside down catfish, but I dont know much about them.

 

[fishkeeper123]

Yeah, I was hoping to stick with a lot more micro schooling fish than large fish so I could include the shrimp. I am also not worried about the shrimp babies. Some will get eaten, but there will be plenty of hiding spots, as it is a lushly planted tank. I wasnt sure about the gourami. I seen some that are super aggressive, and some that are completely fine, but ill probably stay away from them. Are there any gourami species that are more mellow? Yeah I think a bristlenose would be fun, all the pluses of a common pleco without the size or waste. I was also thinking about getting a twig pleco, they seem fun. Also another catfish I was thinking about was the upside down catfish, but I dont know much about them.

Honey gouramis are more peaceful than other gouramis and I think could work. I don’t know much about the other catfish you suggested. The twig catfish gets to 22.5 cm so wouldnt recommend as I’m assuming it a 4 foot tank? I don’t know about the upside down catfish and whether they can work with what you have but they are smaller which is good.

 

[Sesom]

Honey gouramis are more peaceful than other gouramis and I think could work. I don’t know much about the other catfish you suggested. The twig catfish gets to 22.5 cm so wouldnt recommend as I’m assuming it a 4 foot tank? I don’t know about the upside down catfish and whether they can work with what you have but they are smaller which is good.

Yeah I was doing research and now im looking at honey gouramis. Its not a 4 foot, dimensions are 36 by 24 by 18. How big of a tank/ what dimensions would I need for a twig pleco?

 

[fishkeeper123]

Yeah I was doing research and now im looking at honey gouramis. Its not a 4 foot, dimensions are 36 by 24 by 18. How big of a tank/ what dimensions would I need for a twig pleco?

@Andy Sager @Aiken Drum. Any of you guys have any experience with twig plecos?

 

[Andy Sager]

@Andy Sager @Aiken Drum. Any of you guys have any experience with twig plecos?

If you are talking about Farlowella cats, then yes. (BTW, I've never had them referred to as any kind of pleco. )

 

[Sesom]

If you are talking about Farlowella cats, then yes. (BTW, I've never had them referred to as any kind of pleco. )

Yeah that was My mistake accidentally put pleco instead of catfish. Either way though, would they work in a tank with those dimensions or is that too small?

 

[Andy Sager]

Yeah that was My mistake accidentally put pleco instead of catfish. Either way though, would they work in a tank with those dimensions or is that too small?

It will depend on what else is in the tank with them. They like fast moving water so if you plan on fish that don't like that, the farlowella is not a good match. Check out this video in the wild:

 

[Sesom]

It will depend on what else is in the tank with them. They like fast moving water so if you plan on fish that don't like that, the farlowella is not a good match. Check out this video in the wild:

Im not sure Im still pretty indecisive about fish choices. Ill probably just wait until im farther along in the process before I decide. One last questions though, do you know of any good slow breeding snails? i would love some snails but am not a huge fan of the "pest snails" that reproduce quite fast. I was thinking japanese trapdoor or rabbit snails, what are your guys thoughts?

 

[Andy Sager]

Im not sure Im still pretty indecisive about fish choices. Ill probably just wait until im farther along in the process before I decide. One last questions though, do you know of any good slow breeding snails? i would love some snails but am not a huge fan of the "pest snails" that reproduce quite fast. I was thinking japanese trapdoor or rabbit snails, what are your guys thoughts?

Good choices. You can add nerite snails as well because unless they are in brackish or saltwater, the eggs they lay won't hatch. That said, if you are totally against even seeing eggs, forget the nerite.

 

[Sesom]

Good choices. You can add nerite snails as well because unless they are in brackish or saltwater, the eggs they lay won't hatch. That said, if you are totally against even seeing eggs, forget the nerite.

I actually would love to have some babies, I just dont want a ton to overtake the tank or outcompete other algae eaters for food/snacks. Was maybe thinking of some king koopa nerite snails just because I think they are really cool

 

[Andy Sager]

I actually would love to have some babies, I just dont want a ton to overtake the tank or outcompete other algae eaters for food/snacks. Was maybe thinking of some king koopa nerite snails just because I think they are really cool

But you won't get live babies from nerites. Nothing says you can't have multiple types of snails. Just make sure one of them isn't an assassin snail.